Egyptians gather to buy subsidised sugar and oil from a government truck, after goods shortage in retail stores across the country and after the central bank floated the pound currency, in downtown Cairo, Egypt (Mohamed Abd El Ghany/Reuters).

I wrote this piece with my friend Imran Riffat, who has served in senior management positions with a major international bank and has experience in Cairo that includes a five-year stint as country head of the Egyptian operation.

Last Friday, many Egyptians and more than a few Egypt watchers in Washington, DC, held their collective breath. November 11 was to be the “Revolution of the Poor,” but the 22 million who live in poverty did not show up in Tahrir Square to demand change. It might have been the large number of riot police and armored vehicles in the streets that kept people away. It also might have been the sheer exhaustion of the last six years and the fear of what might come next should another “revolution” erupt. The era of former President Hosni Mubarak may be perceived as an era of stagnation, but thus far it looks good along a number of economic, social, and even political dimensions in comparison to what has followed it. Still, Friday was a big win for Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi (and a setback for the Muslim Brotherhood, whose spokesman, Hassan Saleh, seemed to be foaming at the mouth in his official statement on behalf of the group encouraging protests). Not long after it became clear that Egyptians were not mobilizing came the announcement that Egypt and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) had agreed to a much-needed $12 billion loan. Then, on Sunday, the Egyptian stock market did well. To cap off the weekend, Egypt’s national soccer team beat Ghana 2-0, vaulting the team to the top spot in its World Cup qualifying group. Read more »

Tunisian lawyers gather as they demonstrate against the government's proposed new taxes, near the courthouse, in Tunis, Tunisia (Zoubeir Souissi/Reuters).

I read Ross Douthat’s column in the New York Times every Sunday. I guess that qualifies me as a fan, but it’s not that I agree with everything he writes. On at least one occasion, I thought his column was downright weird. For the most part, though, I appreciate his insights into cultural and religious conservatives that are the bread and butter of his work. On Sunday, October 9, he offered his readers a piece called “Among the Post-Liberals.” It was an exposition on how the “new radicals,” “new reactionaries,” and “religious dissenters” within the West are engaged in trenchant critiques of the Western, liberal, democratic, capitalist order, though none of these groups have developed a unified theory of what ails this system or of what should come next. Of Douthat’s 808 words, it was the following passage that really grabbed me: Read more »

A woman with her daughter look at a stall selling festival lights and Ramadan lanterns, or "fanoos Ramadan", at Sayida Zienab district market during the first day of Ramadan in old Cairo, Egypt (Amr Abdallah Dalsh/Reuters).

Nada Elfeituri discusses the politics of identity and tribalism in Libya as civil strife continues to unfold.

Stefan Winter examines a 1936 pro–Syrian unity petition by Sulayman al-Asad, grandfather of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, who pushed against the creation of an Alawite state. Read more »

New Independent Task Force Reports

India now matters to U.S. interests in virtually every dimension. This Independent Task Force report assesses the current situation in India and the U.S.-India relationship, and suggests a new model for partnership with a rising India.

Rates of heart disease, cancer, diabetes, and other noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) in low- and middle-income countries are increasing faster than in wealthier countries. The report outlines a plan for collective action on this growing epidemic.

The authors argue that the United States has responded inadequately to the rise of Chinese power and recommend placing less strategic emphasis on the goal of integrating China into the international system and more on balancing China's rise.

Campbell evaluates the implications of the Boko Haram insurgency and recommends that the United States support Nigerian efforts to address the drivers of Boko Haram, such as poverty and corruption, and to foster stronger ties with Nigerian civil society.